I never shut off "garden analysis mode". Never.
I am evaluating when I take the dog out for a walk.
I am studying when I take the garbage to the curb.
I am projecting plant growth three years into the future as I throw the football with my son.
I am mentally relocating shrubs while burning the chicken on the grill.
The entire exercise is more of a curse than a blessing. While it keeps my mind active and stokes the creative fire, I can never shut it off. I am thinking about the hideous state of my Sneezeweed plants as I type this sentence (more on that in an upcoming post - Grrrrrrr).
But what I have discovered over the last three years while authoring this blog, is that this type of affliction makes for good post fodder. I feel better as I pour my heart out and hopefully, you can relate in some way, leave me a kind comment to let me know I'm not alone and we can all sleep well at night. Win/Win ... actually, Win/Win/Win/Win.
With that in mind, I'd like to introduce a new blog series that ideally, will accomplish what I just outlined in the previous paragraph. I am calling it "I Have to Friggin Move That". It may be the simple relocation of an ornamental grass to a more strategic locale or the moving of an overgrown conifer or even the violent upheaval of a bunch of perennials that are making it difficult for me to concentrate on anything else.
You get the idea.
So now I will provide you with the first story in a series that will not only force me to take the appropriate corrective actions so I have blog material, but will also stimulate gardening conversation. That is always a good thing.
Please take a close look at the two shrubs in the middle of the photo below:
Actually, here is a closer shot of said shrubs that will drive home my point in a much more obvious way:
The shrub on the left is a Viburnum 'Aurora' and the shrub on the right is Hydrangea 'Endless Summer'. I see these two shrubs each and every day as I walk up my front walkway. They have been together for a few months now, ever since I relocated the Viburnum to a deer-free zone back in the Spring. I was only getting two to three blooms on this gem of a deciduous shrub each April as the deer were nipping off the buds in Summer/Fall.
I have been brutally unhappy with this pairing as they are too similar in leaf shape, color and overall size. Because of that, they look really bad situated next to each other. Like really bad. Like a good gardener would never dream of that combo bad. On top of that, I am way down on 'Endless Summer' as the blooms are always weak and the shrub itself fails to impress year after year. I have been moving that Hydrangea in my mind for too long and I needed to take action for my own sanity.
And I finally friggin did it:
The Hydrangea was moved to a location where it will have one last chance to show me that it is worth keeping and I moved an Arborvitae 'Sherwood Frost' a few feet from its prior location. The Viburnum and the Arborvitae will now have sufficient room to grow and there is a nice contrast in texture between the two new bedfellows:
I have lost the love for Arborvitaes over the past few years but this one caught my eye with its variegated foliage and white "frost" on the new growth. I especially look forward to seeing how it performs in the Winter:
The entire work effort took about ten minutes but it was oh so worth it.
Check another one off. I'll be able to sleep just a little bit better tonight knowing this is officially off of the mental to-do list.
